Life’s Tests From The Book Of James

Join us in our new series entitled, “Life’s Tests”. James is writing to the Jews who have left Jerusalem due to persecution. He is encouraging them to keep their faith. In the book of James, he provides various tests to maintain the strength of their faith. In this 10 part series we talk about these tests and how we can use them in our every day life.

The Test of Suffering

The Lord wants to change us to make us like him. We know this process is painful because he does it through trials and tribulations, as he states in James chapter 1. Let us remember that when we are going through these things it is for a purpose, to produce patience and endurance in us. As Believers, there is a crown of life waiting for us in Heaven, which is eternal life. May this message help encourage you to hang in there and be obedient to his commands.

The Test of Suffering | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 10-05-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test of Temptation

How do you deal with sin and how is it going? Many of us are discouraged. We keep going over the same process of temptation – sin – confession, over and over again. James said that we do not have to do that. There is a way to break the sin process. It starts with intercepting desire and dealing with it at that point. With Christ’s help, we can have victory in that area and begin to live a life free of that sin – the way God meant for us to live when he created us.

The Test of Temptation | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 10-11-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Word

Our third test is how we respond to the Word of God. One of the main evidences of salvation is a hunger for the Word of God. The Book of James discusses two aspects of this. First, God’s Word has to be accepted by Believers. Secondly, God’s Word has to be allowed to work. This message will focus on both of these aspects of how we respond to the Word of God.

The Word | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 10-18-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test Of Love

There are a lot of people and religions today that basically believe that if someone does more good than bad, you will be in good standings with God. James tells us however, that the standard for righteousness before God is perfect obedience. If we’re going to try and be righteous by meeting all God’s laws, we cannot miss even once or we would be guilty of sin and must pay the price. The Bible however, teaches that Jesus paid the price. His love for us was so great that he took the guilt and was executed on the cross in our place so that we could be completely forgiven. Those that accept Jesus’ forgiveness are looked at by God as holy and accepted. There is no longer any judgement for the repentant sinner because there is nothing left to judge. How will we respond to such an act of love?

The Test of Love | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 10-25-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test Of Works

The next Life Test from the Book of James is what we are calling, The Test of Works. James points out three characteristics of worthless faith or as James puts it, dead faith. We’ll talk about the characteristics of an Empty Confession, a False Compassion, and a Shallow Conviction. We’ll look at what James, John and even Jesus had to say about these characteristics. It is very beneficial for a Christian to test ourselves to see if there is any evidence of these characteristics in our own life and if so, understand how to respond to it.

The Test of Works | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 11-01-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Smallest Trouble Maker- The Tongue

Do you want God to work in you and through you? If so, here are a few questions to ask yourself: Am I conscious of the things I say on a daily basis? Am I working on the things that come out of my mouth on a daily basis? Do I stop and ask God in the morning, “Lord, help me say everything that will edify you and glorify your holy name so that your presence will show through me.” If not, give it a try. Listen to this message for new ideas and help to be in control of your tongue and body so that we can dwell in Christ on a daily basis.

The Smallest Trouble Maker- The Tongue | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 11-08-2015 by Terry Drace

The Test of Wisdom

The Lord has made us a generous offer to give us wisdom whenever we need it. This is one of his greatest promises. There is never any reason for us to be confused. God has given us tests to determine what wisdom is from above, and that will strengthen our faith. Our faith strengthened not only by what he says, but how we use that wisdom in our lives. For that we are thankful and marvel at God’s goodness, faithfulness and love.

The Test of Wisdom| Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 11-15-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Benefit Of Staying Grateful- A Special Thanksgiving Message

We are responsible for our thoughts or in other words, our attitude. We read in the Bible that God wants us to do be in control of our thoughts and be aware of what we are thinking – to think about what we are thinking. We need to be proactive and replace what we think about naturally with what God wants us to think about. Use this message for ideas to help us control our thoughts so God can work in us to prepare us for Heaven while we are here on Earth.

Spiritual Wellness Check

As with our physical bodies, our spirit needs to undergo a wellness check now and then. Everything can look good on the outside, but there is a potential for harmful things to develop within us that we cannot see. As we grow in Christ we should experience, for instance, pride and ego being removed and replaced by humility. We should see our longings and desires for more of the world evolve into wanting more of Jesus and less of the world. This is a good message to help us become more sensitive to our own spiritual wellness so that God can make adjustments within us to help us grow to become more like Christ.

Wellness Check | Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 11-29-2015 by Terry Drace

The Test of Dependence

How can we find out the will of God and subsequently follow it? In our lives we are required to make many, many, decisions. We decide where we are going to live, who we are going to marry, which school we’re going to go to. We decide all kinds of issues related to our families. In most cases, the Bible does not provide specific direction for making those kinds of decisions. Yet, the Bible says God is in control. It says God knows the beginning from the end. It says he has specific plans and purposes for each one of us. How do we find out what they are and how to use that information in the decision making process? This message is a good resource for a biblical approach for how to determine God’s will for our lives.

The Test of Dependence| Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 12-06-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test of Wealth

James provides us with another test to determine if our faith is genuine, the test of wealth. James tells us that the way we view money is a strong indicator of our faith. We find that possessing wealth is not bad or sinful in itself. Everyone possesses wealth or material goods to one degree or another. Moses reminded us that the Lord gave us the ability to create wealth, so having wealth is not sinful. It is misusing the wealth we have that is sinful. This message is a great resource to test ourselves on how our wealth and material possessions can have an effect on our faith.

The Test of Wealth| Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 12-13-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test of Truthfulness

Jesus said what is in our heart is going to influence what comes out of our mouth. It’s a matter of the heart, the condition of our heart.
Speaking truthfulness on a regular basis is not possible unless we get a heart transplant, which Jesus specializes in. Listen to this message to find out how.

The Test of Truthfulness| Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 12-13-2015 by Bob Reinhart

The Test of Prayer

It requires a lot of faith to be able to pray to an unseen person – To talk to an unseen person about our problems and then expect them to come through. When the answer comes however, our faith gets stronger. Join us in this video to see how the test of prayer will not only verify our faith, but strengthen it.

The Test of Prayer| Life’s Tests From The Book of James | 1-3-2016 by Bob Reinhart